Is living at work normal when completing a project on a tight deadline? [closed]

Question

I dropped out of school a few months ago to work at a tech startup without realising how demanding the job would be. The company culture is passion-first. I'm frequently told I'm doing great work and enjoy several perks (private office, free meals, reasonable pay). I'm the only developer that's been asked to move in (because my commute is the longest) - though everybody is working 10-12 hours a day.

Supporting the team is critical, but can such a narrow focus damage my personal career? Or is this a valuable experience in itself? Can I expect to be rewarded for this work after I've left the company (i.e. are career benefits temporary)? How long should I work at a company before asking for equity? Should I be studying independently and trying to grow my external influence instead?

E is for Edit and Elaboration

The team is tight

The company is small. Everyone is indispensable. This is a critical point in time and the company would fail if any team member were to quit now.

• Anyone with the means to do so has invested in the company
• Family and decade-long business ties
• We fire 90% of new people

How I fit in

Known to be nervous and lacking discipline but productive and with good intentions. I've noticed programmers at other companies describe some tasks as taking a week which I would be expected to complete in an hour.

• Newest permanent addition
• Only dedicated front-end developer
• Does data/marketing in spare time

This situation is temporary

Some days I'll leave an hour or so early to socialise with some objective (find an Ember developer, organise a talk..), my primary concern is that there will be more and longer high-intensity phases.

• Normally everyone works 47.5 hours a week
• Until mid-January we're working 60 hours a week (about to become 84 w/ weekends)
• Most days everyone leaves work at the same time

Resolution

After seeking clarification I found this was meant only as a casual suggestion. Asked about moving into a nearby hotel temporarily to reduce commute, founder seemed to think this was a good idea.

Asides

Doormat analogies have been made, I'm not sure whether these apply as everyone in the company is making the same effort as me.

I certainly have leverage to ask for equity but am concerned using it would appear as coercion and violate the company culture. Should I expect to be offered equity?

Answer 1

No, it's not normal, and you're being exploited.

In a startup environment, pulling the odd all-nighter might very occasionally be justifiable if you're doing something absolutely mission critical (eg. your server room just caught fire and you need to restore everything from backups before 9 AM). However, it sounds like this is both your first job, in which case it's unlikely that this is the case, and that they're expecting you to put in crazy hours on a regular basis, which is not healthy at all. And based on your other question about regular panic attacks at work, your body is already finding this seriously unhealthy.

Also, "reasonable pay" is not a perk. Many fools people choose the startup grind because they hope their stock will mint them untold millions, although realistically this is about as likely as winning the lottery (you should probably read the whole thing, but start at "How to value an equity grant" for the TL;DR). If you haven't even been offered equity, then you're just being exploited, plain and simple.

So stop being a doormat: cut your hours back to 9 to 5, say "no" or channel up a little Goodfellas if they ask you for more unpaid overtime, and above all start looking for a better job immediately, since this situation is not going to improve.

Answer 2

Supporting the team is critical, but can such a narrow focus damage my personal career?

It may. If the lack of personal time/life changes you for the worse, then that can certainly impact your career down the road. If you burn out and need months of recovery time to work productively again, that can certainly impact your career. If you start being a workaholic due to "getting used to it", that can harm your career.

Or is this a valuable experience in itself?

It can be. It can make you appreciate normal work again. And of course, the entire point of doing this for a startup is so the startup is successful and your equity in the company pays off handsomely.

And can I ask to be paid for overtime?

You can ask... This will depend on your jurisdiction and your employment contract, but you're likely out of luck.

Can I expect to be rewarded for this work after I've left the company?

It would be exceptionally unusual for you to be rewarded after leaving the company (unless you have equity in the company - vested and exercised stock options, which are yours and your work indirectly contributes to them becoming valuable down the road, even though you're no longer at the company).

As for other companies hearing about this sort of thing and paying you more because of it... No, I can't imagine that happening. It will go one of two ways:

1. The new company hears about it and questions your decision making ability. That does not make a good employee, and would not lead to more compensation.
2. The new company hears about it and thinks that it would be great if they could get an employee that would work tons of hours for a normal salary. I suppose that's a "reward" compared to no job, but...

How long should I work at a company before asking for equity?

It depends.

If all the good things (salary, benefits, commute, opportunity to learn/advance/network, friendships, perks, etc.) about the job are enough for you to trade your labor for those things without the equity, then you perhaps don't need to ever ask for the equity.

Then again, if the work is causing you to sacrifice your personal life and put in far more labor than is fair, then equity can help compensate for that loss (assuming you think equity in the company is actually worth anything).

Start ups are about taking a risk. You'll often get lower pay for the potential windfall that comes with sale or IPO. You'll often have to deal with the pain of an immature company for increased potential advancement.

If all you're doing is taking on the pain without any of the benefit, then I would recommend re-evaluating your arrangement.

Answer 3

Every cool sounding perk you have been offered has been because tech companies have found they keep some tech employees in front of their computer for more hours. Offer food they stay through dinner; offer entertainment they hang around on weekends because it is fun. They have found that the expense is treated as a business expense but you don't pay taxes on the benefit and it can be cheaper than extra pay.

Giving you a place to a stay may save you money, or only commuting time. Of course if you move 100% into the corporate housing you may find it impossible to easily move out again. Getting a new job would require an immediate move.

Is crunch time experience valuable experience?: Yes. Is extensive death march experience valuable?: not so much.

Extract yourself from the excessive overtime, and extensive use of the cool perks. Determine what rights you have to overtime pay, and if you should be getting it, request it. And it might be time to look into positions with other companies.